


The Children Are the Future

by naasad



Category: Venom (Movie 2018)
Genre: Angst, Autistic Eddie Brock, Domestic Fluff, M/M, Morning Sickness, Murder, Post-Canon, Vigilantism, married bickering, not a parasite eddie
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-21
Updated: 2018-10-26
Packaged: 2019-08-05 02:05:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 6,228
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16358594
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/naasad/pseuds/naasad
Summary: Right when Eddie finds himself responsible for another, much smaller symbiote, serial killer Cletus Kasady escapes from prison.





	1. Prologue: Carnage

**Author's Note:**

> Eddie does experience similar symptoms to pregnancy, and I've tagged morning sickness, but I've been very careful that this is not mpreg.
> 
> Please make sure to tell me what you think!

True to his word, Venom had been hibernating for the duration of their interview with Kasady.

As Eddie drove away from the prison, he could feel him beginning to stir. "Carnage," he said aloud. He _felt_ Venom recoil, then sift through his memories with an urgency he'd never felt before. "That's what he had to say," he explained quickly, unnerved by the feeling. "'There will be carnage.'"

Suddenly, he was hit in the chest with a sense of loss so strong it was physical. He pulled over as quickly as possible. "Venom?" he asked. "What's wrong?"

Venom was silent for a long moment. **Carnage,** he finally said. **My spawn.**

"Your _spawn_?" Eddie squeaked. "You have kids?"

 **Yes.** Venom retreated to the back of his mind. **You've met them all now. I do not know what happened to Lasher and Phage. Scream found a host. Agony is dead. We killed Riot.**

"Wait. Riot?" Eddie carefully pulled back onto the road. "I thought Riot was your squad leader."

**Yes. I am a loser. Unfit for leadership. I was very proud of him. I was not supposed to be, but I was. It went to his head.**

"And - and Carnage?"

Venom wilted, and there was that sense of loss again, only slightly less sharp and much more bitter. **The oldest of my spawn. We will have to kill him, too.**

Eddie blinked in shock. "Well, maybe he'll be on our side."

 **No! Carnage is a forerunner - a black operative. He can survive centuries without feeding, but he can also devour the whole planet and still not be satisfied! And he's found symbiosis with one of the most depraved minds of your generation.** Venom shuddered. **We must kill him. And his spawn.**

"How do you know he's spawned - that he has spawn?"

 **Clockwork, Eddie. Every ten Earth years, we must divide.** Venom fell silent a long moment. **I do not want my next baby to be a monster like I was. Please, Eddie. Help me raise my next baby right.**

"I will," Eddie promised, not needing even a second to think about it. "How long?"

**Two years left.**

"And how long until Carnage gets out, do you think?"

**Not long.**


	2. Two Years Later

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mostly fluffy, this one, the angst will really start with the next chapter.

Most days, Eddie woke up, showered, stuffed his face with tater tots, steak, and chocolate, and went to work. Then he came home, ate, napped, and bit off criminal's heads.

The routine was comforting, and Venom thought so, too, happily curling up around his brain stem when they were able to stick to it, and generally making a nuisance of himself in his intestines when they weren't.

So when they both woke up and immediately had to run for the toilet, neither were happy.

"What the hell?" Eddie grumbled, brushing his teeth.

Venom was quiet, curled protectively around his stomach.

"Love?" Eddie asked, massaging his belly. "Please tell me what's wrong."

 **Nothing,** Venom said, finally speaking up.

"Venom."

**Baby.**

"What?"

Venom appeared over his shoulder, nuzzling his jaw with his head before retreating. **Baby. The divide happened last night. He is too small for a host, and the air is toxic in our raw form.**

"So he's made a home in my tummy, then?"

**Yes. Not all of it.**

"That's encouraging."

**He sleeps. Don't wake the baby, Eddie.**

Eddie smiled softly. "Alright," he whispered, "but I at least need to call into work. The mention of vomit should be enough."

Once that was done, he leaned back on the couch and tuned in his laptop to Sesame Street on NetFlix.

**What is this?**

"Child friendly television."

Venom huffed and laid his head on Eddie's shoulder. **It will suffice.**

They made it to noon before Eddie's stomach grumbled loudly and he was hit with a wave of hurt that definitely didn't come from Venom.

 **You woke the baby,** Venom spat, disappearing to coil comfortingly around their stomach.

"Not my fault we're hungry," Eddie muttered. He stroked his navel, feeling like an absolute lunatic. It wasn't a new feeling. "There, there, little guy," he cooed. "Just time for some food, that's all. How about some tater tots? Your old dad really likes those. Both of us."

A taste flooded his mouth, but he couldn't quite place it.

 **Jalapeño poppers,** Venom said, sounding utterly betrayed. **Your son wants jalapeño poppers.**

Eddie laughed and stood, slowly, reaching for his coat and wallet. "Oh, so now he's my son? Ten minutes ago, he was your baby."

Venom sniffed. **Hate spicy. Poison. It is literally poison so other animals won't eat it. But humans don't listen.**

There was a question from the back of their mind, just far enough away that Eddie couldn't hear it.

 **Yes,** Venom said in answer. **Humans are very dumb. Your father is the dumbest. I don't know why we love him.**

"Aw," Eddie crooned. "I love you, too, parasite."

**Take it back!**

"Can't. This is a verbal conversation."

**Take it back!**

"It's bad to argue in front of the baby."

Venom grumbled but settled down.

Eddie patted the back of his neck reassuringly. "You know it's a term of endearment, love."

**Yes, Eddie. Still hurts our feelings.**

"And I would be genuinely concerned about that if you didn't admit you liked it that one time you thought I was asleep."

**Under duress. Doesn't count.**

"How? I was just asleep."

Venom pouted.

Laughter bubbled up to both of them.

Eddie stopped in the middle of the stairs, grinning like an idiot.

 **Did you hear that?** Venom asked.

Eddie nodded. "Baby's first laugh."

He was still smiling as they ate their way through three seperate delis.

"How about something new?" Eddie asked as they exited the third. "Something more like what human children eat?"

 **Like what?** Venom asked.

"I dunno, fish crackers?"

**Are they made of real fish?**

"No."

**Pussy.**

"Let's not start with the name calling in front of the baby."

 **You started it.** Venom's attention split then. **Sleepy, baby?**

Eddie smiled softly.

**Baby is asleep. He can't hear. Pussy.**

Eddie shook his head. "Do you want to stop at Jack's?"

**Yes! We like Jack! He gives us good food. Not spicy.**

"You're really hung up on that, aren't you?"

**We like Jack better than Eddie.**

"Oh, and now we've stooped to telling lies, have we?"

**... Yes. We love Eddie. Still don't know why.**

"Come here." A tendril snaked from Eddie's collarbone and he kissed it quickly, before any random passerby could notice. "I love us, too."

Venom purred happily.

As they entered the bar, Jack looked up at grinned. "Still eating for two, Eddie?"

Out of habit, Eddie glanced suspiciously around the empty bar. Jack wouldn't betray them. Jack liked them ever since they'd helped throw out that gang. He shook his head. "Three now."

"Congratulations?"

Venom made his way out from Eddie's hood. **"Thank you,"** he grumbled. **"No alcohol. No poisoning the baby."**

Jack raised an eyebrow, but dutifully passed over a ginger ale.

Eddie shrugged. "Haven't found a host yet - "

 **"Too _little_ for a host,"** Venom interrupted.

Eddie rubbed the top of his Other's head. "And I don't exactly have a place reserved for a baby, so he's made himself at home in my stomach for now."

"Okay," Jack said, noping on over to the other end of the bar.

Venom huffed. **"We're too weird for him."**

Eddie smiled.

Venom stayed out until the bar began to fill. Both of them hoped Jack wouldn't need to ask for help that night.

 **I don't know how transformation would affect the baby,** Venom admitted. **But it would definitely wake him up.**

Eddie murmured his agreement, ignoring the strange looks he got.

"Wait, everybody shut up!" some stranger shouted, pointing at the tv.

Eddie looked up sharply. "Venom."

 _Cletus Kasady escapes,_ the ticker read clearly.

**Carnage....**

Eddie swallowed nervously. "The baby."

Venom went silent for a moment. **Carnage will have spawned, too. Clockwork, Eddie.**

Dread settled into their bones.

"I have to go," Eddie announced, putting down what he owed.

Jack looked at them, worried.

Eddie shuddered and simply went home.


	3. Dropping Bodies

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hahaha yeah I fled my mom's birthday party because I got in an argument with literally half the family about my name change and my "paying attention" stims, but my dad's my ride home, so I'm hiding out with my little brother in his room.
> 
> So here's a chapter a bit earlier than I was planning.

Eddie woke up with a nightmare, gasping and clawing at his chest. "Venom! Venom!"

Thin black tendrils twined over his shoulders like a necklace. **We are here. Don't wake the baby.**

Eddie sobbed in relief and fell back against his pillows.

 **What did we dream about?** Venom asked, unusually quiet.

"Remember - " Eddie paused to lick the tears off his lips. "Do you remember when Riot ate us?"

Venom harrumphed. **Didn't eat us, Eddie. Still here. I saved us.**

"I know," Eddie whispered. "But Carnage - Carnage could do that, too, couldn't he?"

**He can try.**

"And it wouldn't just be us, it would be the baby, too."

 **I will protect us. All of us.** Venom stroked Eddie's cheek. **Go to sleep, love.**

The next time he woke, it was to the sound of his cellphone ringing. He patted blearily around the mattress until Venom answered it and shoved it into his hand. "Lo?"

"Eddie, it's Anne."

"Annie?" Eddie lurched out of bed, hand trailing on the sheets. He blinked away the sudden dizziness. "What's wrong? You okay?"

"I'm fine. Just... Tell me you two are not eating policemen."

Eddie shook his head, trying to wake himself up faster. "No. Why?"

"Turn on the news."

"Okay, it's gonna take me a second to get my laptop booted up."

"Nevermind, just.... An entire station was killed last night. They're all missing heads. Now, please, are you sure you haven't killed any cops?"

Eddie yawned and stretched. "Not yet, I mean, the deal was we could eat bad people - "

"Eddie!"

The sheer panic in Anne's voice woke him up instantly. "No, we've never eaten a cop. We're trying to be noticed as little as possible."

 **Carnage,** Venom said. **Carnage would do this. Take out the military first. Create panic. And his host would enjoy it.**

"Annie...," Eddie said slowly, "did any of those cops have something to do with the arrest of Cletus Kasady?"

"I don't know, maybe. But it's not his M.O."

Eddie winced.

**Tell her.**

"He has a symbiote. Like, a super symbiote."

Anne very clearly took five deep breaths. "Okay," she said. "Okay, I'll find out what I can. But you two need to keep a low profile, okay?"

Something stirred and stretched uncomfortably in Eddie's stomach, and he took deep breaths through his nose.

**Baby's awake.**

"Eddie?"

"Okay, yeah, definitely not going to be a problem! Talk to you later, bye, Anne!" Eddie tossed his phone on his pillow and ran to the bathroom, just barely making it in time.

 **He didn't like the gas bubbles,** Venom said, most unhelpfully.

Eddie groaned. "The soda? He didn't like the soda? What kind of kid doesn't like soda?"

**Our kid. He wants more jalapeño poppers. I think he should try tater tots. He's never had them before, how does he know he doesn't like them?**

What followed that statement was a war of tastes and emotions.

Eddie clamped his hands over his ears. "Oh my god, stop! I swear you are both children! And since one of you is literally only a day old, that is saying something!"

Silence reigned in his skull. He waited.

 **Sorry, Eddie,** Venom said eventually.

"Thank you," Eddie sighed. "Now, I am going to go and get fish crackers, does anyone have a problem with that?"

There was a moment more of that blessed, blessed silence.

 **No,** Venom said. **They're not made of real fish.**

Eddie sighed and closed his eyes, wishing he could talk to the baby directly.

 **Soon,** Venom promised. **Can we get chocolate, Eddie?**

"Yes, we can definitely get that."

**And popcorn? The baby wants popcorn.**

"How does chocolate covered popcorn sound?"

**Yes, Eddie! Yes! Chocolate and popcorn together? Yes!**

Eddie grinned. "Alright, then, let's go."

The grocery shopping took nearly all day. Much to Venom's dismay, the baby wanted to try everything except tater tots, and he especially wanted to try anything spicy.

 **Eddie,** Venom whined. **Your son is poisoning us.**

Eddie sighed and tossed a fifth box of Hershey's into the cart, hoping to placate his Other. "Two children," he swore under his breath.

Venom retreated to sulk.

When they got home, Eddie set the bags on the island and collapsed on the couch, trusting Venom not to dump all the hot Cheetos in his sock drawer or something like that. The clatter of cabinets opening and closing was soothing. The minute his Other sank back beneath his skin, all three of them drifted off to sleep.

They woke up to a long, hot tongue prodding at their face - not their own.

Eddie's eyes flew open. "Mask!"

 **No!** Venom cried. **The baby!**

Carnage laughed and slunk closer. **_"How sweet. My host doesn't care for children. Our spawn incubates in a jar at home."_** His blood red face split in an eery mockery of Venom's smile. **_"Playing house must be... nice."_** He licked his teeth.

Venom detached his face from Eddie's shoulder. **"Spawn."**

 ** _"Progenitor,"_** Carnage spat. He turned back to Eddie, reaching out with a clawed hand. **_"And you. My host thinks you are so pretty! Lips like a girl's.... Tantalizing!"_**

Venom lunged and bit.

Carnage howled and scuttled over to the window on all fours. **_"Another time,"_** he leered, and then he fell to the alley below.

 **Eddie?** Venom asked, once more back in his head.

Eddie trembled and stumbled to his feet, reaching for water and his phone. "Yeah, yeah, I'm okay, peachy."

**What do we do? The baby!**

Eddie screwed his eyes shut, pressing in the heels of his palms until he saw stars. He nodded sternly to himself. "Call Annie."

Anne picked up on the third ring. "Eddie, what's wrong?"

"Kasady came to our house," Eddie practically sobbed, wrapping his arms around his stomach as if that would protect the sleeping baby. "He came to our fucking house! We can't fight back right now, we - we can't. What do we do? We're so scared, Annie. What - what do we do?"

Anne was silent for all of three seconds. "Venom, help Eddie pack a bag. Dan and I are coming to get you guys. We'll be there soon."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Btw, Eddie is totally the mom.


	4. Friends

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Little bit of downtime before everything starts in earnest.

"Do you have everything you need?" Anne asked as Eddie shoved his duffel into the backseat and climbed in after it.

"Yes." Eddie dug the heels of his palms into his eyes and rocked back and forth. "Please just drive."

Anne glanced back in the rearview mirror, wincing as they ran over a pothole.

Eddie breathed in deeply through his nose as the baby stretched in protest.

"Why can't you fight back?" Anne asked.

Eddie laughed desperately. "I'm so tired of explaining."

Venom reared over his shoulder, perching on the headrest of the passenger seat. **"It is not good for the baby."**

Anne slammed on the breaks.

Eddie clambered over the seat, reaching for the grocery bags she kept in the glovebox. With Venom's help, he barely made it.

"What baby?" Anne asked. " _How_ baby?"

 **"I am the sole genetic donor,"** Venom explained. **"Eddie is simply helping with incubation, and he is helping me raise it the right way."**

Anne raised an eyebrow. "The right way?"

**"Klyntar children are independent from birth and they are monsters. Human children are coddled and they rarely are. I do not want my baby to be a monster. Eddie is helping."**

Anne nodded slowly. "Okay." She glanced back at Eddie. "Are you okay?"

Eddie nodded, wiping his mouth with a spare napkin. "He's a picky eater and heavy enough to give me back pain. He's touchy about being moved around, which happens every time I so much as sneeze, and I can't even talk to him yet, but mostly he just sleeps."

Anne smiled. "At least he's not sitting on your bladder."

Eddie groaned.

"No hormone changes."

**"Actually, there is an increase in phenylethylamine production. It's what we feed off of and now there are two of us."**

Eddie snorted. "Is that why I'm so grouchy?"

**"No, the baby and I are eating the excess. The grouchiness is just your personality."**

"Ouch."

Anne hid a smile behind her hand. "Alright. Maybe Dan can look the three of you over just to make sure. You had quite the fright today."

 **"Would never hurt Eddie,"** Venom huffed.

"I know. But Carnage would."

Venom fell silent, then lifted his head, preening. **"l protected us. I bit him."**

Eddie disolved into giggles.

Anne shook her head, smiling.

When they arrived at the house, Dan was waiting for them, blinking to stay awake.

Anne greeted him with a kiss on the cheek. "I know you just got off work, but there's a baby symbiote in Eddie's stomach, growing in there until it's big enough for a host of it's own. Think you could check him over real quick?"

"Okay," Dan said, turning and heading back inside. "Did you hear the news?"

Eddie shook his head.

"More cops?" Anne asked.

Dan nodded. "They were answering a B&E in the suburbs. Something like ten blocks is sectioned off now."

Anne scowled. "Doesn't this guy ever get full?"

Venom reappeared, staring at the silent tv. **"No. He does not."**

"Did you find anything?" Eddie asked, dropping his plastic bag in the trash before letting Dan herd him over to the couch, stethoscope in hand.

"One," Anne said. "Just one of the officers killed so far was in any way related to the Kasady cases."

Eddie sighed and ran a hand down his face.

"What are you going to do?" Dan asked, moving between his different organs and listening for damage. He nodded to himself and went to stand by the coffee machine, obviously trying not to give in to temptation. "Everything looks good as far as I can tell."

"Thanks." Eddie shook his head. "We can't do anything."

 **"Can't let the baby get hurt,"** Venom agreed.

"Yeah." Eddie put a hand on his belly. "We're just going to have to wait until Sleepyhead here is done growing."

**"Sleepyhead is a terrible name for a baby."**

Eddie turned to give Venom a Look.

"Is he still asleep?" Anne asked.

Eddie nodded. "He's going to be hungry when he wakes up. Venom only packed chocolate and tater tots."

"What does he like?" Dan asked, glancing at the pantry.

"Jalapeño poppers, fish crackers, fish, and chocolate."

 **"He likes spicy,"** Venom sneered. **"Clearly, he is his father's son."**

Anne laughed. "Alright. It's late. We should all be getting back to bed."

"The spare room's all set up," Dan said. "There's extra blankets in the - "

"Top of the closet, and a nightlight in the side table," Eddie finished.

Dan nodded and yawned. "I wasn't sure if you remembered. Night, Eddie," he called, heading upstairs.

"Night, Dan!" Eddie sighed and looked down at his hands where they were white-knuckling the couch cushions.

"Hey." Anne knelt down and took one of his hands in one of her own. "It's okay to be scared. We'll talk more tomorrow, okay? We'll figure something out."

"Yeah," Eddie agreed, half-hearted.

Venom sank back beneath his skin. **Bedtime, Eddie. New day tomorrow. Fresh start.**

"Yeah," Eddie said. He rubbed his eyes with his fingers. "Night, Annie."

"Good night, Eddie."

When Eddie woke up the next morning, the very first thing he did was run to the restroom. "Venom," he groaned.

Venom huffed. **I wanted tater tots.**

"If I can't eat what I want because of the baby, you can't either. Fair is fair." Eddie groaned as he leaned over the toilet again.

 **Baby is getting bigger,** Venom purred.

Eddie huffed, then closed his eyes as very human fingers ran through his hair.

"Is this helping?" Dan asked.

"Yeah," Eddie sighed, twisting around to lean against the wall.

 **No,** Venom grumbled. **He's scaring the baby.**

"Which baby?" Eddie chuckled, putting a hand on his stomach. "It's okay, it's just Dan. Dan's a friend. We like Dan."

**Dan has machines that hurt us.**

"But he doesn't use them on us."

**Anymore.**

"What are you doing, Venom?"

**Informed consent is important, Eddie. We like Annie much better.**

Eddie cracked an eye open and looked up at Dan. "Where is Annie?"

"Still asleep." Dan yawned and stretched. "I was just going to get up and make breakfast when I heard you. I was thinking cinnamon pancakes and cheesy hashbrowns?"

**What are hashbrowns, Eddie?**

"Tater tots for rich people," Eddie explained. "They're a different texture and not as sweet." He leaned his head back against the wall as Venom and the baby conferred, finally able to hear the little one, if only as white noise.

 **We will both try... hashbrowns,** Venom finally said.

Eddie smiled and looked up at Dan. "Pancakes and hashbrowns sound good."


	5. Welcome, Baby

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I thought I could get away with the action scenes in mind without graphic violence, but no cigar. If that's not your cup of tea, I'm really sorry. Thank you for sticking with me this far.

Eddie sat on the kitchen counter as Dan cooked and Venom watched.

 **"Why don't you do that?"** Venom asked.

Eddie snorted. "Cooking takes skill. And patience. And creativity. And also the ability to follow the directions. None of which I have."

Venom gave him a Look.

Eddie shrugged. "Not for cooking."

"I can teach you," Dan offered.

Eddie laughed. "Many have tried before and failed." He startled and put a hand on his stomach as the baby stretched. "Hungry, sleepyhead?"

"Almost done," Dan promised, flipping a few more pancakes off the grill. He leaned down to check on the hashbrowns in the oven.

Anne walked downstairs, then, freshly showered and dressed. "Breakfast already?"

Dan smiled and kissed her. "Most important meal of the day."

Eddie politely turned away. Venom nuzzled his jaw and he kissed his head, smiling. It didn't really hurt anymore.

"You two should probably go grocery shopping," Anne said, pulling away, "since we don't know how much longer you'll be staying."

"Sounds good," Eddie said.

"Nothing quite like some manly bonding time," Dan agreed playfully.

 **"Bonding?!"** Venom spluttered.

"Not like that," Eddie sighed, projecting memories of playing competitive Minesweeper with the few friends he'd thought he'd had in high school.

 **"Oh,"** Venom said. **"Loser."**

Anne scratched behind Venom's head. "You be good."

 **"Yes,"** Venom purred. **"Be good. Eat bad."**

"Close enough for me." Anne snagged a couple pancakes off the platter and started walking out to her car. "I have to pick up some paperwork from the office. I'll text you if I think of anything I need."

"Sounds good!" Dan called as the door shut.

Eddie smiled. "No reminder to feed the cat?"

"Oh," Dan said, "was that your thing? She was so surprised when I first did it. No, mine is forgetting to water the plants."

"Oh, I did that, too," Eddie laughed. "I tried growing a windowsill herb garden when I first moved out, cause I figured it would be cheap. Total black thumb. We have a spiderwort plant now that Venom takes care of."

Venom nodded. **"Cleans the air. Is the food ready yet?"**

The oven beeped just as Dan finished the last pancake. "Perfect timing," he grinned.

The hashbrowns were a success.

The shopping on the other hand, took approximately forever, in Eddie's opinion. He kept that opinion to himself, even as they continued to visit every store he'd been to the previous day.

"Text from Anne," Dan said, right as they climbed into the car, ready to go back to the house. He chuckled nervously. "Do you get the feeling she's trying to keep us out of the house?"

"A little bit," Eddie admitted, fidgeting uncomfortably as the baby moved.

"Do you want to stay in the car while I get this last thing?" Dan asked.

Eddie sighed, then nodded, running a hand over his face. "Yeah. Yeah...."

Dan patted his arm. "I'll be right back."

Eventually, they did make it back, and Eddie was immediately struck by the sheer amount of pink in the living room window. "Was that there this morning?"

Dan looked up from parking the car. "No?"

Venom lurked in the back of Eddie's mind, ready to do what he could.

They pushed open the door, only to be greeted by the cat standing in the hallway.

Venom bristled and the baby recoiled.

"It's okay," Eddie murmured. "It's just Mr. Belvedere."

They made their way slowly to the living room.

"Surprise!" Anne flicked on the lights and revealed Jack, Mrs. Chen, and a banner reading 'Welcome, Baby'.

Eddie groaned. "You shouldn't have."

"But we did," Anne said, kissing his cheek. "We even got you two a whole chocolate cake to yourself - selves."

 **"Chocolate?"** Venom asked, rearing over Eddie's shoulder.

"You've had a rough weekend," Anne said. "You deserve a party. Just this once. We can talk about what to do with Kasady after."

Eddie sighed. "Alright." He wrapped her in a hug. "Thank you."

"What do we want to do first?" Mrs. Chen asked. "Cake or presents?"

 **"Cake!"** Venom cheered, wiggling in excitement just like Eddie often did. **"The baby agrees with me. Cake first!"**

They devoured the cake in nearly one bite and everyone laughed.

Venom was all too happy to open presents: a painstakingly decorated mason jar from Mrs. Chen, labeled 'Time Out Jar'; a handmade coupon for one night of all you can eat jalapeño poppers at Jack's; a book on parenting moody teenagers and a set of old Disney DVDs from Anne and Dan - every single one of Eddie's childhood favorites.

"Moody teenagers?" Eddie asked.

Anne nodded. "I don't know how long it takes Klyntar to mature, so I got this one based on Venom's overall personality," she said, only half-joking.

Eddie laughed.

Venom sulked.

Eddie couldn't stop laughing, and then he started choking.

Dan reached over to put a hand on his arm. "Are you alright?"

Eddie shook his head as it became harder and harder for him to breathe.

Anne was immediately on her feet. "What's wrong?"

Eddie's eyes were wide with fear and he glanced at Venom out of the corner of his eye.

Venom disappeared beneath his skin. **Baby is coming.**

"Eddie?" Dan crouched down in front of him, holding his hand. "Venom, what's going on? If you can't help him, I need to intervene now."

Venom appeared over Eddie's shoulder, practically vibrating with worry. **"The baby is trying to bond with Eddie, but our symbiosis is so complete, trying to kick me out is hurting him. I can't stop him."**

Anne shook her head. "Can we even do anything?"

Venom went silent for a moment as Eddie continued to wheeze. **"Not while I'm here,"** he finally said before disappearing again.

Several things then happened at once.

Venom separated from Eddie.

A purple symbiote flashed out of the cat and into Anne.

Eddie was completely surrounded in black and neon green as the baby took over.

The Anne-Symbiote reached over and ripped the baby off of Eddie, dropping him in the nearby Time Out Jar and sealing it before stabbing Eddie through the lungs.

Then, she grabbed Venom, Dan, Jack, and Mrs. Chen and bowled out the window, shattering it.

Eddie laid on the ground, gasping as blood welled in his mouth, reaching one hand for the writhing, seething mass in the jar.

Just as things started to go black around the edges, the jar shattered and a very familiar texture hit his fingers.

 _Father,_ the baby said, standing them up and working quickly to repair the injury. _Are you alright?_

Eddie nearly cried at hearing his voice for the first time. "Yes. She took - "

_My other parent, I know, and our friends. We have to go after them, Father! We must make her fear the might of Sleepyhead!_

Eddie blinked in shock. "I am not letting you call yourself Sleepyhead."

_But - but that's what you called me._

"Oh that? That's a nickname, little one, and it's not badass at all. What about Sleeper? Like sleeper agent. That's much better, yeah? And still close enough?"

_Yes, Father, if you say so. Will you still call me Sleepyhead?_

"Most likely?"

_Then we will make her fear the might of Sleeper!_

Eddie grinned. "Yes. Do you know where they went?"

Sleeper quietly searched through their memories before finding the story on the news last night. _Probably there?_

"Probably," Eddie agreed. He turned his thoughts to Venom. "Hold on, love. We're coming."


	6. Little Brother's Prerogative

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Final confrontation! The epilogue will be posted some time tonight.

Sleeper ran through the streets, following Eddie's memory of the break in. He burst through yellow tape and skidded to a stop in front of a warehouse.

"A warehouse," Eddie deadpanned. "Okay, cliche comicbook supervillain it is."

Sleeper raised his fist to knock.

"Nope!" Eddie yelped. "No, we don't know what's in there. We have to be sneaky."

 _"Sneaky...,"_ Sleeper agreed. He glanced up above the door. _"Through the window?"_

Miraculously, getting through the window was easy. Sleeper crept through the shelves until they could see things clearly, without being seen themselves.

Carnage paced around a table in the middle of the room, while the Anne-Symbiote stood by the captive humans in the corner. It looked like Mrs. Chen's leg was broken.

 _"There,"_ Sleeper hissed, pointing to a nearby workbench. _"My other parent."_

Sure enough, Venom writhed inside a sealed jar.

Eddie snarled. "We need to get to him without being seen. Would you be able to bond with one of the others?"

 _"Dan,"_ Sleeper said. _"Dan is our friend. We like Dan."_ He licked his mouth. _"Watch this."_ And then he just stepped out into the open while Carnage stared right at him.

Eddie bristled, ready to fight.

Carnage looked away.

 _"Pheremonal camoflauge,"_ Sleeper said gleefully, bouncing on his toes. _"He can't see me."_

Eddie sighed with relief. "Okay, good job. Let's go get your dad."

Sleeper sauntered over to the jar and picked it off the workbench, crouching down behind it before opening it.

Venom wiggled happily at the sight of the two of them.

_"Once I leave, you will lose camoflauge."_

"Okay," Eddie said, mentally shaking himself loose. "On three, then? One, two... three!"

Sleeper detached and scuttled away, making a beeline for Dan.

Venom reached up and wrapped around Eddie's arm. **My Eddie,** he purred in the privacy of their mind. **You came.**

"Yes, love," Eddie murmured. "Are you ready to kick some ass?"

Venom laughed and enveloped him. **"Carnage!"** he screamed, jumping over the workbench.

Carnage looked up in shock then glanced dismissively over at his spawn. _**"Scorn."**_

Venom charged.

Scorn intercepted him, punching him straight across the jaw.

Venom snarled and picked her up by the throat, but she wrapped her legs around his neck and sent them both tumbling to the floor. She straddled his shoulders and brought both fists colliding down on top of his head.

His chin cracked against the concrete floor and he saw stars for just a moment before his vision cleared enough to see Sleeper fighting Carnage.

He'd disappear and then reappear, but somehow, Carnage always saw him coming, and Sleeper just kept taking hits.

He wasn't made for that.

Venom grabbed Scorn's arm before she could get in another blow and he threw her halfway across the room. **"Switch!"** he bellowed, leaping at Carnage.

Carnage growled and rolled out of the way, landing a solid punch just below Venom's shoulderblade.

Venom howled in pain and fell to the ground again. Carnage loomed triumphantly for all of a second before his progenitor was picking himself up off the floor.

Venom grinned, licking his teeth. **"You know I can do this all day."**

Carnage bared his teeth. _**"We'll see."**_ He lunged.

Across the room, Sleeper blocked every single one of Scorn's attacks. _"We don't have to fight. Your host must be resisting. She loves this human like my father and my other parent love each other. Not the same, but similar enough. And my host loves her in return."_

 _ **"Do you ever shut up?"**_ Scorn snarled.

Sleeper shrugged. _"This fight is too easy for me. You should have picked a different host. Annie is much too strong for you."_ He grabbed her ankle as she tried to kick him and tucked it under his armpit. _"And Annie is my friend."_ He punched her hard enough the concrete cracked when she hit the ground.

 ** _"Friends,"_** Scorn spat, attempting to crawl to her feet. _**"Who cares about friends? Or family? Meaningless."**_

 _"Only to your progenitor,"_ Sleeper said, offering her a hand. _"You could be part of our family if you want."_

Scorn snarled.

Venom took another hit, this time to the ribs. He got his arms up just in time to block a hit to the face, and then brought them down on Carnage's elbow without mercy.

The arm bent at an unnatural angle, and Carnage glanced at it as if it were only a minor annoyance before putting it back. _**"That was unpleasant,"**_ he snapped.

Venom smirked.

Carnage kicked him in the chest, then shot out tendrils of red, grabbing him and whipping him around. He loosed, sending him flying into the table.

 **"Eddie,"** Venom whimpered, trying to get up and failing.

Inside their mind, Eddie wept. "I know, love. I'm here."

Carnage crawled over on all fours. _**"Not all day after all,"**_ he peered. _**"You will be so... tasty!"**_

He opened his mouth, ready to devour, but a hand clamped down on the top of his skull.

Sleeper lifted Carnage into the air, bombarding him with paralyzing fear. _"Hi, brother,"_ he said, as he unhinged his jaw. He swallowed him whole, host included, then belched. _"Bye, brother."_

Venom sank back into Eddie, who gasped with relief as they stood.

At the same time, Sleeper retreated into Dan. "Oh my god," Dan yelped. "I just ate a serial killer!"

Eddie laughed and put a hand on his shoulder. "Welcome to the club."

The two symbiotes snaked out of their hosts, butting and rubbing heads, checking each other over for injuries.

Dan laughed desperately and then they walked over to Scorn, Jack, and Mrs. Chen.

"How's everybody doing?" Eddie asked.

Mrs. Chen glared at him. "My leg is broken, how do you think I am doing?"

Scorn shifted uncomfortably. _**"I can fix that."**_

"You better fix it!" Mrs. Chen snapped. "You're the one who broke it!" She looked up at Eddie and shook her head. "This one needs discipline if you ask me!"

Scorn put her hands on the fracture and bled into the skin.

Anne gasped as she was let free. Dan knelt beside her and drew her into his embrace. "I've got you."

Mrs. Chen looked down at her now healed leg, inspecting it thoroughly. "Can you heal my arthritis, too?" She listened carefully, then nodded. "I'm keeping this one."

"Careful," Anne said, smiling. "She's a handful."

Mrs. Chen smiled and patted her cheek. "When you have babies of your own, you will understand. Every child is a handful."

"What about you two?" Eddie asked, looking at Dan.

"Hm? Oh." Dan shook his head. "No, I'd love to, but I'm really not cut out for all this stuff. And... Well, having my girlfriend's ex-fiance's kid in my head isn't very...."

"It's okay," Eddie said, slightly disappointed. "We can find someone else."

"I'll take him," Jack said. He shrugged. "I could use some help around the bar."

Sleeper poured excitedly out of Dan and into Jack, popping his head out of his shoulder. _"Now every day is all you can eat jalapeño poppers!"_ he cheered.

Everyone laughed.

"Come on," Eddie chuckled, nodding to the door. "Let's get out of here."


	7. Epilogue: Grown

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So when I said "later tonight", what I really meant was "in half an hour".
> 
> This is the end. It's the first multi-chapter fic I've done in over a year and I'm so grateful everyone likes it so much. <3 Thank you for all your comments and kudos!

Eddie stared at the box of DVDs in his hands. "I didn't know he would grow up so fast."

Venom curled around his shoulders and nudged his jaw comfortingly. **Maybe we can get a human baby for you.**

Eddie snorted, glancing around at their mess of an apartment. "We are so not ready for a human baby." He sighed and put the movies away.

 **Not now.** Venom twined over and around his fingers. **Later?**

Eddie smiled and kissed him. "Maybe later. Much later."

**How much later?**

"As long as it takes to get our act together."

**That is a very long time.**

Eddie chuckled and picked up the grocery bag sitting on the counter. "Alright, bar's open. Ready to go?"

 **Ready,** Venom purred, settling back under his skin.

On their way to Jack's, they passed Mrs. Chen's, able to see and hear as she cradled Scorn tenderly, scolding her in a stream of frustrated Mandarin.

Eddie smiled.

Once they arrived, he took a seat at the bar, waiting for Jack to notice.

Eventually, the bartender wandered over. "Come to check on the little one?" he asked.

Sleeper snaked out of his shirt. _"Hello, Father."_

"Hey, Sleepyhead," Eddie said, holding out his hand, palm up.

Sleeper nuzzled into the warm flesh, and Venom purred as he wrapped around him protectively. **"Eating bad guys?"**

_"Yes. They were hurting a nice lady. Jack called her a cab."_

Jack blushed and shrugged. "Seemed like the thing to do."

Venom narrowed his eyes as Eddie burst out laughing. "Well, thank you for keeping in mind that you have our one week old son with you."

 _"Father,"_ Sleeper whined.

Venom hushed him.

"Here." Eddie put the grocery bag on the counter. "We didn't get you a birthday present."

 _"What is it?"_ Sleeper asked, finally escaping Venom's grip to investigate.

"Chili chocolate."

_"Chili is... spicy?"_

Eddie nodded slowly.

Sleeper shrieked, wriggling exuberantly. _"Spicy chocolate! Spicy chocolate!"_ He dove into the bag.

The grownups laughed.

Venom wrapped himself around Eddie's hand and squeezed tight. **He'll be okay.**

Eddie smiled and squeezed back.

**Crying, Eddie?**

"No," Eddie lied under his breath, wiping away a tear.

**Pussy.**

**Author's Note:**

> In the six days since I first posted the prologue, this has become my top fic by kudos, comments, bookmarks, and subscriptions, and my second top fic by hits. Thank you all so much. I'm literally crying right now (though that may be mostly the sleep deprivation). You are all literally the best.


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